Based on the novel Querelle of Brest by Jean Genet, Querelle is the story of a Belgian sailor who goes to a brothel following a betrayal on a fellow dealer as he deals with his sexuality and other things happening in and around this brothel. Directed and co-edited by Rainer Werner Fassbinder and screenplay by Fassbinder and Burkhard Driest, the film is an exploration of a man dealing with his identity following a murder he committed as the film would Fassbinder’s film released months after his death of a drug overdose. Starring Brad Davis, Franco Nero, Laurent Malet, Hanno Poschl, and Jeanne Moreau. Querelle is a ravishing and provocative film from Rainer Werner Fassbinder.
The film follows a Belgian sailor whose ship stops at a small French port town known for its seediness where he enters a brothel where he would engage in his first homosexual affair with its bartender leading to a journey of murder, deceit, and self-exploration for the titular character (Brad Davis). It’s a film that is about this small town filled with sailors, drug dealers, steel workers, and all sorts of people engaging in all sorts of decadence with this sailor who also works as a dealer as he kills another sailor over a deal. The film’s screenplay by Rainer Werner Fassbinder and Burkhard Dreist with translated text of Jean Genet’s words and other text by Catherine Breillat is filled with a lot of different stories yet it centers around a murder of a sailor that Querelle committed but no one knows if he killed that man.
Querelle deals drugs including opium as he would also meet his brother Robert (Hanno Poschl) who is the lover of the brothel manager Lysiane (Jeanne Moreau). Lysiane’s husband Nono (Gunther Kaufmann) runs and tends the bar as he would get Querelle to play a game of dice where if Querelle wins, he would sleep with Lysiane but if Nono wins. Nono gets to fuck Querelle as the latter does happen where Querelle finds himself entranced by his encounter with Nono. Yet, things become troubling as it relates to Querelle’s relationship with his brother as Lysiane is fascinated by Querelle while Querelle is seen from afar by his superior in Lt. Seblon (Franco Nero) who pines for him. After killing the sailor Vic (Dieter Schodor), Querelle hangs around while a construction worker named Gil (Hanno Poschl) is the main suspect after a fight with another worker as it leads to suspicion but also Querelle trying to spin a web of lies and deceit around everyone. The script doesn’t just feature these storylines involving multiple characters that Querelle meets but also dialogue that is stylish as it also play into this air of intrigue as the film is partially told through an unseen narrator.
Fassbinder’s direction is definitely stylish where it is shot inside a studio to play up this sense of artificiality and fantasy that is prevalent throughout the film. The direction is filled with a lot of symbolism and attention to detail where Fassbinder makes no bones about the homoerotic content in the film from the phallic statues on the balcony, glimpses of shirtless sailors swabbing the deck in the background, glass paintings of sexual imagery at the brothel, and the gazing of men’s crotches throughout the film. The usage of close-ups help play into the emotional elements of the film but also this idea of identity as it’s presented in a stylish and expressionist approach with some medium shots for some shots to play into some of the dramatic tension. Fassbinder’s approach to the wide shots help play into the attention to detail into this small port town as there is this artificiality that surrounds the location but it also play into this idea of a gay man’s paradise.
With the aid of co-editor Juliane Lorenz, Fassbinder’s editing does have bits of style as it play more into the emotional and melodramatic elements of the film. Notably in a scene where Querelle and Gil meet to discuss a partnership as it play into the former’s need for control. Fassbinder also displays that air of style in a fight scene between Querelle and Robert as it play more like a dance than a knife fight. The direction also play into this sense of intrigue and desire while nothing overtly explicit is shown where Fassbinder instead aims for something emotional. The air of suspense as it relates to the murder does have Fassbinder sort of play with the conventions of the detective film as it reaches this climax that is more dramatic than suspenseful as well as revelations about Querelle’s own journey. Overall, Fassbinder crafts an intoxicating yet entrancing film about a Belgian sailor’s exploits in a small French port town and brothel.
Cinematographers Xaver Schwarzenberger and Josef Vavra do amazing work with the film’s overtly stylish cinematography with its usage of artificial lighting for many of the film’s exterior and interior setting with its usage of yellow and orange along with blue lights for a few key scenes as a form of moonlight. Production designer Rolf Zehetbauer and art director Walter E. Richarz do brilliant work with the look of the port city as well as the interiors of the brothel and some of the places including the phallic statues. Costume designers Barbara Baum and Monika Jacobs do fantastic work with the look of Lt. Seblon’s uniform, the sailor uniforms, the leather uniforms of the police, and the lavish clothing of Lysiane.
Makeup artists Ingrid Massmann-Korner and Gerhard Nemetz do terrific work with the look of Lysiane in her lavish makeup as someone desperately trying to regain a sense of her youth. The sound work of Hartmut Eichgrun and Vladimir Vizner do superb work with the sound as it help play into the atmosphere of the brothel and some of the places outside of the buildings. The film’s music by Peer Raben is incredible for its mixture of jazz-like pieces including a couple of songs that Lysiane sings as well as some eerie electronic-based pieces that play for dramatic effects and some lush orchestral pieces as it is a highlight of the film.
The film’s marvelous cast include notable small roles from Neil Bell as Gil’s lover Theo, Dieter Schidor as the sailor/dealer Vic Rivette, Burkhard Driest as the corrupt police officer Mario who is attracted to Querelle, Laurent Malet as a young sailor who observes some of the action, Roger Fritz as a police official, and Gunther Kauffmann as the brothel bartender Nono who sort of runs the brothel and other things as he would decide Querelle’s self-exploration fate.
Hanno Poschl is excellent in his dual role as Querelle’s brother Robert and the construction worker Gil where he displays a sense of torment and anguish in the former as someone who has some issues with his brother while he is a more charismatic figure as the latter as someone that is in love but is also dealing with trouble when he’s been accused of killing Vic. Franco Nero is fantastic as Lieutenant Seblon as a naval officer who pines for Querelle from afar as a man who records his thoughts on a tape recorder while is also concerned for Querelle’s well-being. Jeanne Moreau is amazing as Lysiane as the brothel owner who also sings as she is someone that is entranced by Querelle but is also concerned about what he might bring to the brothel. Finally, there’s Brad Davis in an amazing performance as the titular character as this sailor/drug dealer who murders a fellow dealer and later encounters his first homosexual experience as he deals with his sexuality and role in life while trying to manipulate and control everything as it’s a sleazy yet charismatic performance from Davis.
Querelle is a phenomenal film from Rainer Werner Fassbinder that features great performances from Brad Davis, Jeanne Moreau, Hanno Poschl, and Franco Nero. Along with its gorgeous visuals, rapturous music score, and themes of sexual identity and dominance, it is a film that display this idea of fantasy, reality, and longing but also a world that is dark with a young man trying to control everything. Even as it is shown in grand display without any kind of compromise which is a great way for Fassbinder to go in his final film. In the end, Querelle is a sensational film from Rainer Werner Fassbinder.
Rainer Werner Fassbinder Films: Love is Colder than Death - (Katzelmacher) - (Why Does Herr R. Run Amok?) - (Rio das Mortes) - (The American Soldier) - (Whity) - (Beware of a Holy Whore) - (The Merchant of Four Seasons) - The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant - World on a Wire - Ali: Fear Eats the Soul - (Martha (1974 film)) - (Effi Briest) - (Fox and His Friends) - (Mother Kuster’s Trip to Heaven) - (Chinese Roulette) - (Germany in Autumn) - (Despair) - (In a Year of 13 Moons) - (The Marriage of Maria Braun) - (Third Generation) - (Berlin Alexanderplatz) - (Lili Marleen) - (Lola (1981 film)) - (Veronika Voss)
© thevoid99 2019
Based on the novel by David Grann, The Lost City of Z is a fictionalized story of Percy Fawcett’s exploration through the Amazon to find a lost city as he would go on various trips in his lifetime to find this mysterious city. Written for the screen and directed by James Gray, the film is a look into a man’s determination to uncover a legendary myth that would later become an obsession. Starring Charlie Hunnam, Robert Pattinson, Sienna Miller, Angus MacFayden, Ian McDiarmid, Franco Nero, Harry Melling, Clive Francis, and Tom Holland. The Lost City of Z is a ravishing yet eerie film from James Gray.
Told in the span of 20 years in the early 20th Century, the film follows the exploits of Percy Fawcett (Charlie Hunnam) who was a military officer that was asked by the Royal Geographical Society into surveying a land that is at the center of a border dispute between Brazil and Bolivia. This journey into South America and the Amazon would lead to this obsession in finding what he believes to be a lost city where the first idea of civilization began. It would be a journey that Fawcett would venture into through the course of 20 years where he would return to Britain with his findings only to be met with ridicule and skepticism. James Gray’s screenplay revolves around three expeditions Fawcett would make as he would often be accompanied by Corporal Henry Costin (Robert Pattinson) in these expeditions since Costin does know a lot about the Amazonian rain forests. The first act is about Fawcett’s life as an officer in Britain as well as his first expeditions through the Amazon where he would make a discovery about the possibility of a lost city.
The second act is about another expedition with Costin and another soldier in Corporal Arthur Manley (Edward Ashley), who also took part in the first expedition, where they’re joined by famed biologist James Murray (Angus MacFayden) who is unprepared for the trek through the Amazon as he becomes a liability into the expedition that would be stopped abruptly due to Murray’s selfishness and the news of Archduke Ferdinand’s assassination that would start World War I. While it is obvious there are some dramatic liberties that do relate to Fawcett’s explorations as well as what happened to him in World War I, it does play into the fact that the man was devoted to his family including his wife Nina (Sienna Miller) whom he always turn to for advice. The third act is about Fawcett’s final expedition with his eldest son Jack (Tom Holland) in 1925 as well as the fame he received about his past expeditions before embarking on the journey that would eventually be shrouded with mystery.
Gray’s direction is definitely mesmerizing for the scope of the locations he captures as well as the sense of danger and mystery into exploring the Amazon. Shot largely on location in Belfast and other parts of Northern Ireland for scenes set in Britain with the scenes of the Amazon shot near Santa Marta, Colombia. Gray would create an atmosphere for the two different worlds where they both share an air of serenity and chaos. The scenes set in Britain would play into a world that is organized but also with an air of superiority towards their idea about the people in the Amazon believing to be savages. It’s an idea that Fawcett doesn’t agree with as Gray would use medium shots and close-ups in how characters interact with one another in Europe with some wide shots for some of the location. When Fawcett is at the Amazon with Costin and Manley, the direction is definitely looser but also with an air of unpredictability as it relates to the encounter with natives. Notably in the second act where Costin is able to communicate with the natives where he, Costin, and Manley make a major discovery about their way of living.
Gray would also play into this air of chaos that looms into Fawcett’s findings with those in the British government not impressed with his findings and claims while there would be a brief detour for a World War I battle scene where Fawcett has to lead a regiment with Costin at his side. It would include a small scene where Fawcett and other soldiers meet a fortune teller who is aware of Fawcett’s obsession with finding the lost city as she would tell him it is his destiny. The film’s third act does play into this air of intrigue in Gray’s direction into not just Fawcett’s return to the Amazon with his son Jack joining him but also what has changed in the years since his last major expedition. Still, Gray wants this final expedition to be more about the bonding between father and son who went through a period of estrangement as they would embark on a discovery that would create intrigue but also the idea that what they found is something much bigger. Overall, Gray crafts an intoxicating and haunting film about a man’s desire to find a lost city in the middle of the Amazon in the course of 20 years.
Cinematographer Darius Khondji does brilliant work with the film’s cinematography with the usage of sepia-drenched lighting for some of the nighttime interiors in Britain as well as a few nighttime scenes with the usage of fire while emphasizing on low-key colors for some of the exterior scenes in the jungle as it’s a highlight of the film. Editors John Axelrad and Lee Haugen do excellent work with the editing as it is straightforward with some rhythmic cuts for some of the action and suspense including a few montages that play into the surrealism that Fawcett would encounter. Production designer John Vincent Puzos, with set decorators Maria Andrea Rangel and Naomi Moore plus senior art director Fiona Gavin, does amazing work with the look of the homes that the Fawcett families lived in as well as the site for one of the tribes that Fawcett and his men encounter where they stay briefly yet peacefully. Costume designer Sonia Grande does fantastic work with the costumes from the dresses that Nina wears as well as the suits and clothes that the men wore during those times.
Hair/makeup designer Nana Fischer does terrific work with the look of Costin with his beard as well as some of the hairstyle that Nina sported in those times. Special effects supervisor Simon Cockren and visual effects supervisor Eran Dinur do superb work with some of the special effects that include bits of set dressing as well as the look for some of the animals Fawcett and his team encounter. Sound editor Robert Hein does incredible work with the sound in capturing the atmosphere of the jungles and for the World War I sequence as well as the quieter moments in the film. The film’s music by Christopher Spellman is wonderful for its orchestral score that play into the suspense and drama for some of the scenes set in the Amazon while music supervisors George Drakoulias and Randall Poster provide a mixture of classical and traditional pieces of the times as well as opera piece that Fawcett and his men would hear early in the film.
The casting by Kate Ringsell is great as it feature some notable small roles from Nathaniel Bates Fisher and Daniel Huttlestone in their respective roles as the adolescent and teenage versions of Brian Fawcett, Bethan Coomber as the seven-year old Joan Fawcett, Elena Solovey as the fortune teller Madame Kumel, Pedro Coello as Fawcett’s native guide Tadjui who accompanies on the first expedition, Harry Melling as a young government official in William Barclay who mocks Fawcett’s findings, Tom Mulheron and Bobby Smalldridge in their respective roles as the young and adolescent Jack Fawcett, Edward Ashley as the often-reliable Corporal Arthur Manley who joins Fawcett and Costin in their expeditions, Clive Francis as the RGS official Sir John Scott Kettle who is a supporter of Fawcett’s expeditions as well as the few that believed him, and Ian McDiarmid in a terrific performance as Sir George Goldie who heads the Royal Geographical Society in which he assigns Fawcett to survey the land between Brazil and Bolivia to settle their border dispute. Franco Nero is superb as the mysterious Baron de Gondoriz as a man who lives in the jungle as he would lend Fawcett information as well as a guide.
Angus MacFayden is fantastic as the famed biologist James Murray who joins Fawcett for an expedition that he was unprepared for as he would be a liability and would later try to discredit Fawcett for his own selfish reasons. Tom Holland is excellent as Jack Fawcett in his teens and young adulthood as a young man unhappy with his father’s reputation and not being around only to later join him on the final expedition where he would more than acquit himself into life in the jungle. Sienna Miller is amazing as Nina Fawcett as Percy’s wife who is treated as an equal to her husband as well as help him find information and such while knowing that Jack wants to join his father. Robert Pattinson is brilliant as Corporal Henry Costin as Fawcett’s right-hand man who had been to the Amazon and help him find certain pieces as it’s a low-key yet reserved performance from Pattinson that allows him to show so much by doing so little. Finally, there’s Charlie Hunnam in an incredible performance as Percy Fawcett as a man determined to find this lost city where Hunnam display a sense of humility and curiosity as well as knowing that not everything he does is the right decision as it is Hunnam giving one of his finest performances of his career so far.
The Lost City of Z is a tremendous film from James Gray that features great performances from Charlie Hunnam, Sienna Miller, Robert Pattinson, and Tom Holland. Along with its gorgeous visuals, beautiful locations, intricate sound work, and eerie music, the film is definitely a mesmerizing look into a man’s obsession to find a place that is considered mythical but also discover wonders that traditional society would have trouble understanding. In the end, The Lost City of Z is a phenomenal film from James Gray.
James Gray Films: Little Odessa - The Yards - We Own the Night - Two Lovers - The Immigrant (2013 film) - Ad Astra – The Auteurs #67: James Gray
© thevoid99 2018
Directed by Chad Stahelski and written by Derek Kolstad, John Wick: Chapter 2 is the sequel to the 2014 film in which the titular former-hitman being forced to take part in assassination only to get into serious trouble just as he refused to return to the world of crime. It’s a film in which a man who had once gained peace in his life only to be driven back to the dark world of crime is suddenly trying to fight to retain this sense of peace that he has been craving for as Keanu Reeves reprises the role of the titular character. Also starring Common, John Leguizamo, Riccardo Scamarcio, Ruby Rose, Ian McShane, and Laurence Fishburne. John Wick: Chapter 2 is a gritty and evocative film from Chad Stahelski.
The film follows the titular character who has just gotten revenge from the people who had lured him back into the world of crime as he hopes not to return until a crime boss asks him to do an impossible assignment as part of a blood oath Wick made many years ago. Wick initially refuses until his house was destroyed as he is forced to do the assignment as it relates to a person being coroneted to a high seat of crime lords in the hope he can’t do anything else ever again. Yet, the assignment proves to be tricky and challenging where it’s the aftermath that is more troubling as it play into the rules of what Wick has to live by. Derek Kolstad’s screenplay showcases Wick’s reluctance to return to the underworld as all he wants to do is live peacefully as he would make that deal with another crime lord earlier in the film who is related to the people that wronged him in the previous film.
Yet, that peace would be brief all because of the crime boss Santino D’Antonio (Riccardo Scamarcio) who gives Wick a marker that reminds him of the blood oath Wick makes. One of the two rules that Wick has to live by is to never turn down a marker and the other is no killing at any hotels known as the Continental as it’s forbidden in the criminal underworld. Wick has already violated one rule in private as he is forced to do the assassination for D’Antonio as it relates to a seat in this high council of criminal bosses. For everything that Wick has to do in this assignment in Rome, he also has to deal with other hitmen wanting to kill him including a boss’ loyal bodyguard in Cassian (Common) whom Wick has a mutual sense of respect for. When he returns to New York City to seek the help of another crime lord in the Bowery King (Laurence Fishburne) who is an outsider but also lives by the same code of the underworld.
Chad Stahelski’s direction is definitely stylish in its approach to the violence and action while it has a fluidity that harkens to martial arts and samurai films of the past. Shot on location in New York City and Rome, Italy with additional locations in Montreal, Stahelski opens the film with a car chase in New York City as it establishes what Wick is doing and what he wants where it sort of picks up where the previous film left off. While there are some wide shots of the different locations in the film including some unique compositions in some of the meetings and violent moments in some elaborate sequences. Stahelski knows when to slow things down as it relates to the story and what is going on through simple compositions in the close-ups and medium shots as well as the fact that Wick is still coping with the loss of his wife Helen (Bridget Moynahan) some years ago. Stahelski’s approach to set-pieces and how to create moments of suspense are key to the action as he prefers to take its time rather than just go all-in and heighten the action even more following an action sequence.
Most notably a scene in which Wick faces off with Cassian in a New York City subway train where they both look at each other and they’re stuck in a crowd of people but rather than try to kill each other. They bide their time so that people can leave as neither man is interested in killing innocent people which showcases this rare sense of humanity that these two men have which is often lacking in action films. The stakes are also bigger for the film’s third act as it relates to Wick being this target and what D’Antonio is trying to do. Its climax is definitely inventive and stylish in its compositions and choreography with an aftermath that is about this air of uncertainty for Wick. Overall, Stahelski crafts a thrilling and intense film about a hitman being lured back into the criminal underworld.
Cinematographer Dan Laustsen does brilliant work with the film’s stylish cinematography with its usage of stylish lights and colors for some of the scenes including the Roman caverns and lights at night in Rome as well as some of the locations in New York City. Editor Evan Schiff does excellent work with the editing as it is very stylish with its fast-cuts to play into the action but knows when to slow things down and not deviate into chaotic fast-cutting styles. Production designer Kevin Kavanaugh, with set decorators Letizia Santucci and David Schlesinger plus supervising art directors Isabelle Guay and Cristina Onori, does fantastic work with the look of the sets in Italy as well as the sets of the Continental hotel lobbies in Rome and New York City as well as the museum for the film’s climax. Costume designer Luca Mosca does amazing work with the costumes from the design of the suits that Wick wears as well as some of the clothes of the other characters.
Visual effects supervisor Paul Linden does nice work with the visual effects as it is largely low-key as set-dressing for some of the locations as well as for some of the film’s action sequences. Sound editor Mark P. Stoeckinger does superb work with the sound as it play into the atmosphere of the locations as well as how gunfire and knives sound. The film’s music by Tyler Bates and Joel J. Richard is wonderful for its mixture of electronic, rock, and orchestral music that play into the suspense and action while music supervisor John Houlihan create a soundtrack that is a mixture of rock and electronic music that includes a cut from Jerry Cantrell of Alice in Chains.
The casting by Jessica Kelly and Suzanne Smith is great as it feature some notable small roles and appearances from Bridget Monyahan as Wick’s wife Helen via flashbacks, Peter Stormare as a mob boss whom Wick confronts early in the film, Tobias Segal as a homeless hitman, Peter Serafinowicz as a tailor for the Continental, John Leguizamo as Wick’s friend Aurelio who owns a chop shop, Thomas Sadoski as a policeman friend of Wick in Jimmy, Lance Reddick as the concierge for the New York City Continental hotel in Charon, Franco Nero as the manager of the Continental hotel in Rome, and Claudia Gerini as Santino’s sister Gianna who has a seat in the high council of crime lords. Ian McShane is excellent as the New York City Continental hotel manager Winston who is a longtime friend of Wick that warns him about some of the consequences of what Wick would do. Ruby Rose is fantastic in a silent role as Santino’s mute bodyguard Ares as a woman that communicates through sign language as she is this ambiguous figure who is very deadly in the way she is willing to protect Santino.
Common is brilliant as Cassius as a bodyguard for a high council official who also knows Wick as he shares an equal amount of respect for him in the way they do business as well as trying to kill him but with a sense of honor. Laurence Fishburne is amazing as the Bowery King as a crime boss who is part of an underground crime syndicate as he helps Wick in dealing with Santino as well as knowing about what is happening to Wick. Riccardo Scamarcio is superb as Santino D’Antonio as a crime lord that wants Wick to do an assignment by using a sacred code in the hopes he can get a seat at a high council and rule New York City for his own reasons. Finally, there’s Keanu Reeves in a phenomenal performance as the titular character as a man trying to move away from the world of crime only to be lured back because of a blood oath that he can’t refuse where he deals with the task he’s given as well as cope with the loss of his wife and home where Reeves display that restraint in his anguish while knowing that Wick is headed for uncertainty.
John Wick: Chapter 2 is a sensational film from Chad Stahelski that features another incredible performance from Keanu Reeves. Along with its supporting cast, dazzling visuals, and a gripping music score, it’s an action film that manages to do more than expected with its story of vengeance as well as what a man is forced to do when he’s lured back into the world of crime. In the end, John Wick: Chapter 2 is a riveting film from Chad Stahelski.
Related: John Wick - (John Wick: Chapter 3)
© thevoid99 2017
Based on the novel by Benito Perez Galdos, Tristana is the story of a young woman raised by a don as her adopted daughter and later his wife as she seeks to find her own voice upon meeting a young artist. Directed by Luis Bunuel and screenplay by Bunuel and Julio Alejandro, the film is an exploration into the life of a woman who tries to find her identity as an adult as she is played by Catherine Deneuve. Also starring Fernando Rey, Franco Nero, and Lola Gaos. Tristana is a chilling yet evocative film from Luis Bunuel.
The film is a simple story about a woman who is raised by a nobleman after the death of her mother as she grows to be his adopted daughter and later his wife. Yet, Tristana finds her life with Don Lope Garrido (Fernando Rey) suffocating as she seeks to find her own voice while Don Lope is unaware of a world that is changing where Tristana falls for the artist Horacio (Franco Nero) who would show her a world outside of the don yet she still needs him where she becomes ill some years later. It’s a film that explores a woman’s identity and her search to find herself. The film’s screenplay by Luis Bunuel and Julio Alejandro does have a unique structure where its first half is about Tristana as a woman in this relationship as she also is surrounded by the maid Saturna (Lola Gaos) and her deaf-mute son Saturno (Jesus Fernandez) as the latter has a crush on her.
Upon her meeting with Horacio, there’s something in the second half that seems to get lost in terms of its narrative where the second time Tristana and Horacio meet, they’re already having their affair. It’s obvious there’s some details that Bunuel and Alejandro cut out from the book to the script as well as the fact that there’s a lot of time-jumping which sort of confuses the story though it is set largely in 1920s Spain. The narrative does pick up steam in the third act where Horacio and Don Lope meet again where they’re careful around each other for Tristana but complications would emerge as it all plays to what Tristana wants to do. Especially as she’s a woman who had been pulled in many directions where she finds herself back in square one all over again.
The direction of Luis Bunuel does have an element of style but is also very intimate for the way he portrays life of a woman in 1920s Spain. Notably as he is always has his camera fixed on Tristana as she is someone who feels lost as she needed Don Lope as he always been a father to her. The compositions are quite simple in the way Bunuel showcases Tristana’s world where there’s not a lot of colors in her world where it’s a mixture of dark colors with white as there’s very little vibrancy in the film’s look. Even as Bunuel would create some strange dream sequences to play into whatever fate Tristana has for her as there’s some melodrama that occurs as well as some eerie suspense towards the end as it plays to everything Tristana went through in her journey to find herself. Overall, Bunuel creates an extraordinary film about a woman’s search for her identity.
Cinematographer Jose F. Aguayo does excellent work with the film‘s cinematography to display the palette that Bunuel wants while using some low-key lights for the scenes set at night. Editor Pedro del Rey does amazing work with the editing with its sense of style that includes some montages for Tristana‘s nightmares. Production designer Enrique Alarcon and set decorators Luis Arguello and Rafael Borque do superb work with the set pieces to play into the period of locations and homes while Arguello and co-costume designer Rosa Garcia do wonderful work with the period costumes that include the dresses that Tristana wears. The sound work of Bernardo Fronzetti is terrific for some of the sound effects that occur in the film as well as some of the moments that play out on location.
The film’s brilliant cast include some notable small roles from Fernando Cebrian as Dr. Misquis, Antonio Casas as Don Lope’s friend Don Cosme, and Jesus Fernandez as Saturna’s deaf-mute, trouble-making son Saturno who always like to do crazy things. Lola Gaos is excellent as Don Lope’s maid Saturna who is this conscience of sorts in the film despite her frustrations toward her son as she also oversee everything that Tristana and Don Lope do. Franco Nero is terrific as Horacio as a young artist who falls for Tristana as he tries to give her a different life only to deal with Don Lope’s power. Fernando Rey is fantastic as Don Lope as this nobleman who loves and cares for Tristana but also has a sense of control for her as he needs her but also knows how much she needs him. Finally, there’s Catherine Deneuve in a sensational performance as the titular character as a young woman trying to find her identity while being pulled left and right over what to do while becoming disillusioned and lost over the decisions she’s made in her life.
Tristana is a marvelous film from Luis Bunuel that features a radiantly mesmerizing performance from Catherine Deneuve. Along with notable supporting work from Fernando Rey, Franco Nero, and Lola Gaos, it’s a film that explores the world of womanhood as well as a woman finding her identity. Though it is flawed, it is still an engaging film that features some of Bunuel’s surreal trademarks to display a woman trying to find herself. In the end, Tristana is a majestically rich film from Luis Bunuel.
Luis Bunuel Films: Un Chien Andalou - L’Age d’Or - Land Without Bread - (Gran Casino) - (The Great Madcap) - Los Olvidados - (Susana) - (La hija de engano) - (Mexican Bus Ride) - (A Woman Without Love) - (El Bruto) - (El) - (Illusion Travels by Streetcar) - (Wuthering Heights (1954 film)) - Robinson Crusoe (1954 film) - (The Criminal Lives of Archibaldo de la Cruz) - (El rio y la muerte) - (Cela S’apelle l’Aurore) - (Death in the Garden) - (Nazarin) - (La Fievre a El Pasao) - (The Young One) - Viridiana - The Exterminating Angel - Diary of a Chambermaid - Simon of the Desert - Belle de Jour - (The Milky Way) - The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie - (The Phantom of Liberty) - (That Obscure Object of Desire)
© thevoid99 2013
Written and directed by Quentin Tarantino, Django Unchained is the story of a slave who is freed by a bounty hunter as the two team up to find a group of vicious killers while the bounty hunter helps the slave in retrieving his wife from a plantation owner. The film is a mixture of not just the Spaghetti Westerns that Tarantino loved but also mixed in with a bit of blaxploitation as it explores the world of slavery and a man’s desire to claim back his wife. Starring Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Leonardo di Caprio, Kerry Washington, and Samuel L. Jackson. Django Unchained is a thrilling and adventurous revisionist western from Quentin Tarantino.
It’s 1858 in Texas as a man named Django (Jamie Foxx) is being taken to a slave auction by the Speck Brothers (James Remar and James Russo) where they encounter a German-born dentist named Dr. King Schultz (Christoph Waltz) who is looking for someone that knows the infamous Brittle Brothers. Django claims to know the Brittle Brothers as Dr. Schultz frees Django from the Speck Brothers as the two make a deal. With Django a free man, Dr. Schultz decides to train Django as a bounty hunter where they team up to find the Brittle Brothers and split the rewards. Django agrees to Dr. Schultz’s deal in which he hopes to retrieve his wife Broomhilda (Kerry Washington) who has been taken to a famous plantation known as Candyland owned by Calvin Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio). After a successful run of bounties that has made Django and Dr. Schultz famous, the two travel from Tennessee to Mississippi to meet Candie.
Upon arriving into Mississippi, Dr. Schultz and Django decide to play a role to woo Candie whose plantation is notorious for training male slaves into fighting and women into prostitution. After intriguing Candie, Dr. Schultz and Django go to Candyland where the two see Candie’s plantation that is filled with all sorts of things including an elderly servant named Stephen (Samuel L. Jackson). Upon learning that Broomhilda is working at the plantation, Dr. Schultz hopes to see her since he has learned that she speaks German. Once Broomhilda realizes what Dr. Schultz is doing, things seem to go well until Stephen believes something is up as he talks to Candie about his suspicions. Suddenly, trouble brews for Django and Dr. Schultz about their intentions as it leads to a showdown.
The film is essentially the story of a slave who is freed by a German bounty hunter as they team up to kill many targets and retrieve the slave’s wife from a charming yet brutal plantation owner. It’s also a film about a man who has endured slavery throughout his life where he not only gets his first taste of freedom but also find a reason to get back the woman he loves from the shackles of slavery. It’s a film that is mainly a western in terms of its visual setting and plot scenario but it’s much more than that it’s a love story, a revenge film, a buddy film, a comedy, and has elements of 70s blaxploitation in terms of its stylish dialogue and themes.
Quentin Tarantino’s screenplay is quite straightforward in terms of narrative structure yet it does feature a few flashback scenes to reveal what Django went through and how he got separated from his wife. A lot of the script revolves around Django and Dr. Schultz’s budding friendship and their partnership in the bounty hunting business. A lot of which has to involve lots of charm, trying to talk the way out of a situation, and intrigue someone. Yet, there’s also killing where Django and Dr. Schultz each play a character where Django plays valet to Dr. Schultz where both men keep their cool and then go about their business. Some of which would antagonize various plantation owners including a man named Big Daddy (Don Johnson) who tries to organize a rally that doesn’t work itself out.
While the character of Broomhilda doesn’t really get much to do as she’s really more of a plot device for Django who would often see her in his journeys. She is still important as someone who tries to endure all sorts of trouble as her past is just as interesting as she was taught to speak German by her mistress which definitely interests Dr. Schultz. Then there’s Calvin Candie who is this antagonist that is a man that loves to see slaves fight where he makes a lot of money and he gets a lot of pride in what he’s done for his plantation. Yet, he is also quite brutal through the men who work aside him including an elderly servant who is extremely loyal to Candie and is far more vicious in the way he believes slaves should be treated. It adds to this complexity of what Dr. Schultz and Django has to do where the former is disturb in how a slave is killed though it doesn’t surprise Django. Yet, it would play to the kinds of trouble Django would go through not just in the hands of Candie’s goons but Stephen most of all.
Tarantino’s direction definitely has a lot of unique compositions as well as various trademarks that he’s been known for such as the intimate table conversations where there’s a camera on a dolly capturing the conversation. Yet, it is also very stylish in the way Tarantino presents certain scenes such as the flashbacks where there’s an air of grainy stock film footage and de-saturated photography to play up the struggles Django and Broomhilda went through. Still, Tarantino does manage to keep things straight while creating some interesting compositions for the scenes between Dr. Schultz and Django as the way their friendship builds up. Notably as it goes beyond the student-mentor archetype of the relationship as both men are very clear about their intentions for each other.
The film also has Tarantino go into elements of black comedy with not just some of his stylish dialogue that has a lot of use of a certain racial slur. It also plays to the fact that white people are befuddled by the idea of a black man becoming a bounty hunter. The violence is definitely bloody and graphic at times yet it plays to what is happening as these men have to encounter someone like Django. There’s also some very chilling moments of suspense such as the dinner scene between Django, Dr. Schultz, and Calvin Candie where it’s about who can intrigue who in the art of negotiations. It then goes into a very dark turn due to the stakes that occur as it would be followed by what Django has to do and use everything he learned from Dr. Schultz to fight back. Overall, Tarantino creates a film that truly lives up to what is expected in the western but also create something that is engaging as well as entertaining.
Cinematographer Robert Richardson does brilliant work with the film‘s very colorful cinematography from the lushness of the winter scenes to the gorgeous colors of the Candyland exteriors along with the nighttime interiors inside the mansion. Editor Fred Raskin does excellent work by employing lots of stylish cuts including slow-motion cuts for some dramatic moments, methodical rhythms for the suspenseful moments, and some slight fast-cutting in the action scenes. Production designer J. Michael Riva, along with set decorator Leslie A. Pope and supervising art director David F. Klassen, does superb work with the set pieces from the look of the towns Django and Dr. Schultz encounter to the splendor that is Candyland.
Costume designer Sharen Davis does amazing work with the period costumes of the times from the lavish, stylish dresses some of the women wear including the female slaves of Candie to the suit that Candie wears that plays up to his persona. Sound editor Wylie Stateman does wonderful work with the sound from the sound of whips and gunfire to the more intimate moments such as the dinner scene at Candyland. Music supervisor Mary Ramos creates a fantastic film soundtrack that features many film scores from Ennio Morricone, Luis Bacalov, Don Straud, and Jerry Goldsmith as well as mixture of music from soul, hip-hop, country, and pop from artists like Johnny Cash, Jim Croce, Richie Havens, Rick Ross, James Brown, 2Pac, John Legend, and Anthony Hamilton as the music is definitely a highlight of the film.
The film’s casting by Victoria Thomas is just flat-out awesome due to the numerous cameos and appearances that were assembled for the film. In some great cameo appearances, there’s Tarantino associates Zoe Bell and Tom Savini along with Robert Carradine as Candie’s trackers, Michael Parks and Quentin Tarantino as a couple of men taking slaves to a mining company, Bruce Dern as Django’s old slave owner, M.C. Gainey as one of the Brittle Brothers, Tom Wopat as a marshal that Dr. Schultz deals with, James Russo as one of the Speck brothers, Jonah Hill as one of Big Daddy’s associates, and the original Django in Franco Nero as a businessman who shares a drink with Django.
Other notable small roles include Walton Goggins as a sadistic associate of Candie in Billy Crash, Dennis Christopher as Candie’s attorney Leonide Moguy, Laura Cayouette as Candie’s sister Lara Lee, James Remar in a dual role as one of the Speck brothers and an enforcer of Candie, and Don Johnson in an excellent performance as the old-school plantation owner Big Daddy. Kerry Washington is pretty good as Broomhilda though she doesn’t really get much to do though she does have a great moment in her scene with Dr. Schultz where they converse in German. Samuel L. Jackson is brilliant as the very devious servant Stephen where Jackson displays a lot of humor in response to Django only to be much more sinister in what he does to Django.
Leonardo diCaprio is outstanding as Calvin Candie where he exudes not just wit and charm to his role as a plantation owner but also a sense of terror into his character in the way he gives this very chilling monologue. It’s a performance that shows what kind of enthusiasm diCaprio brings as well as something that shows he can play the bad guy. Christoph Waltz is magnificent as Dr. King Schultz where he too exudes wit and charm into his role but also someone who is very intelligent and cool in the way he deals with things while being a mentor to Django as the chemistry between Waltz and Jamie Foxx is a true highlight of the film. Finally, there’s Jamie Foxx in a exhilarating performance as Django where he definitely makes his character a true archetype of what is expected in a Western hero. Foxx maintains that sense of cool in the way he deals with things and his enemies but also a restraint where he knows he has to be in control to save his wife.
Django Unchained is an incredible film from Quentin Tarantino that features a brilliant ensemble cast that includes Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Leonardo diCaprio, and Samuel L. Jackson. The film is definitely one of the most fun and exciting westerns that doesn’t just pay tribute to the genre but also gives it a nice sense of flair that makes it engaging and also thrilling. It’s also a film that isn’t afraid to not take itself seriously while also being funny. In the end, Django Unchained is an outstanding film from Quentin Tarantino.
Quentin Tarantino Films: Reservoir Dogs - Pulp Fiction - Four Rooms: The Man from Hollywood - Jackie Brown - Kill Bill - Grindhouse: Death Proof - Inglourious Basterds - The Hateful Eight - Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood
Related: The Auteurs #17: Quentin Tarantino - Growing Up with Quentin Tarantino
© thevoid99 2012
